xchriz012x

What do you people do for a living?
Job title?
I need to make a career change and need some examples.
Thanks

trumpet1

A dentist. But don't do that!!!!!!!! Too stressful, people hate/mad at you too much. Costs too much to establish a building, way too much post high school education with a low return of investment for your time in school and the impending debts involved, very little time to take a vacation, people hate/mad at you all the time, very expensive to obtain equipment, employee problems, very sedentary job, insurance industry gets in the way, collecting payment is impossible due to people playing "dumb" as they use their misunderstanding of their insurance benefits, back problems, way too difficult to please people, people think you're inherently wealthy and that you shouldn't get paid for your work and that it is a hobby to the dentist , and oh, did I mention that people are mad/hate you all time??
In other words, don't try dentistry. You have to live it to understand and I've lived this nightmare profession for 20+years to give you the low down. No positive perks AT ALL. Once you're in it, you're stuck.

vonbeeler

Own your own business.
The only downside, see above by Trumpet.

WSH

Wow, trumpet...like your candid advice....but, given your attn to detail re: cars, I'd guess you're a damn good dentist....def sucks when insurers/patients don't appreciate the diffces btwn an inept dentist and one who's really skilled....

Would advise anyone to choose a career/industry that makes sense vs one's skill sets....some industries which can potentially be rather lucrative at a young age, e.g., finance and tech, typically require some combination of educational high achievement (e.g., high GPA in a quant major at a Wharton/Stanford-caliber school) to gain entry to many of these rather selective businesses/career tracks (e.g., proprietary trading at Goldman, etc)....and real-world quant/analytic skills/business sense and work ethic to actually have an accelerated career path...but these industries are clearly Darwinian meritocracies which have had many, many <30yo guys in rather lucrative, leading positions for past 25+ yrs....just review history of SiliconValley and WallStreet over past 25yrs, esp the young ages of guys like Gates, Jobs, Lampert, etc when they became well-known titans in these competitive industries....

That said, know a lot of 30-something yo guys in finance/tech who could have easily retired in their 20s....but continue to work fairly hard....most high-achievers in competitive industries are workaholics who often really enjoy their work, esp when it offers daily intellectual/competitive challenges....any job that's just a paychk (and/or simply living off of a trust fund, no matter how massive) quickly becomes mind-numbingly boring to anyone who's intelligent...good luck w/your decision process...

cjf_moraga

Don't look to imitate what people are doing now... look for opportunities in business areas of opportunity that are just getting started... There are going to be many great careers in areas that don't even exist yet... but technology will create them over the next decade... so be informed, flexible, aware and in touch with new technology trends, and above all be optimistic!

For example, my own business (Cinematic/Photo-realistic CGI software) did not even exist when I left college... and yet it is now a foundation of the entire feature film animation/special effects, games, and CAD/Architectural industries.

Chris

ahmadkshuja

Worked hard, went to top schools, authored books / papers, and helped my clients

ajm0623

partner in an international management and strategy consulting firm

nitromilt

Heres one you dont want to do,TRUCKING.Been in this deal for over 30 years,own medium sized fleet,along with a freight brokerage company.I can say first hand that people think you should provide this service for free.WOW...have ya bought a tank of fuel lately??? This a tough way to make a living,new trucks are costing over $120,000 and new trailers costing around $53,000 so there is $173,000+ for one unit running down the road,not to mention its getting very difficult to hire good drivers and owner-operators.As an old friend of mine always said "if it was easy,everyone would be doing it"

trumpet1

I would imagine you have it very tough right now. I thought about doing that on the side but the way traffic is today and fuel is.....fuggetabouit. I would have to say truckers are one up on dentistry in terms of the tough times dept.

trumpet1

I don't mean to brag but I am a VERY good dentist. I work my tail off to please everyone, I'm ethical, I'm very attentive to details and I would give the shirt off of my back to help someone but I get abused by so many "friends" that it is ridiculous. My associate may be even a better dentist than I am technically speaking. She is light years ahead of me in some ways.
I guess my biggest nag about dentistry is the insurance industry butting into how we do our dentistry. It influences patients to do the wrong thing. I think the ins. industry should be sued for practicing dental diagnosis without a license to do so.

Hate to be so negative on this thread but it is the absolute truth.

I love what I do , I just hate that so many outside influences mess it up.

trumpet1

ABSOLUTELY great advice. Some risk in that statement but the rewards are terrific if you do your research.

Another thing, you can actually make great money today doing things that nobody wants to do or has the skills to do. I paid a plumber $ 650 for a 5 hour job the other day! If you did a job like that everyday, you'd make $15000 a month with little overhead once you get established. $100 an hour with only around a few dollars worth of parts! Not bad. One of my best friends owns a gutter company and is making a killing. He owns a huge house, has a house on the beach and seems to have anything he wants/needs.


Handymen with terrific reputations can bring in good money such as bonus room builders, finishing out basement rooms, adding on decks , etc. I just had a room finished in my basement and this guy was getting $50 an hour. Works at his own convenience. Lawn care/lawn designers can make it big because no one does the manual labor jobs anymore. Those guys can nearly name their prices. Granted, it will be hard physical work but consider it as working out at the gym while making a living.

I know these aren't glamorous sounding jobs but the need versus provider ratio is rising these days and the wage for these jobs is really going up because of this.

chipps

It does not matter what you do. Just always know a little more than everybody else about whatever it is that you are doing. As I tell my students when they ask similar questions - When I was in school I sat at the front of the class and paid attention.

College Professor

cgjungdds

I am also a dentist -- has been pretty rewarding for me. Only work 4 days a week M-T 9-5 / great salary and benefits / did i mention 3 day weekend / Trumpet does have a point though, having to deal with a lot of insurance and dental team problems but that is true with most professions. Also, hard to take alot of vacations. I guess everyone has a diff expeience. But for most part, my experience has been quite positive -- I would recommend dentistry as a profession, if you can stomach dental school (which sucks by the way) /my 2 cents

trumpet1

I know what you mean , dental school was tough.

nitromilt

Trumpet1,i am always hiring new drivers and owner-operators.Business has never been better,there is plenty of freight and we have the rates high enough that there is a little cash left over for a few toys.As far as traffic goes my managers are telling me that drivers are saying the roads are considerably less traffic,must have something to do with the price of gas,and if you dont need to go people are staying home.But who knows what the future holds,transportation is an industry that everyone loves to hate.

trumpet1

Good to hear you're trucking business is doing well, but I was basing my opinion on comments I'd been hearing from patients/friends of mine. They said their trucking businesses were really in trouble due to high fuel costs.

nitromilt

oh hell ya, i know plenty of trucking operations that in financial trouble.Alot of it is due to fuel costs,some due to bad management ect,ect.Iam trying to buy out another company now,i wait a little longer i think it will get cheaper.

malwa

Yeah trucking is hard work(uncle was a trucker). And California with 55 mph speed limits for trucks must be annoying.
Are you with Heartland Express? I always see their trucks.

nitromilt

California,has always been just a little different.No big deal we live by the rules.And no i am not associated with Heartland.

carsnob

Trumpet, well put. Plus patients suck your energy. You have to deal with their nervousness, inject them, get through that then work intricately all day long and you have to do all the talking.
I have huge respect for all dentists since you have to be so focuse all the day long. Then people show up late, mess up your schedule, while the others expect to be seen on time.
Then people ***** about the bill. Give me a break. Let them fix their own teeth...
My advise to those looking for a career is simple... Do what most graduates from university are doing...
Go home, live with your parents, go to Europe, wait for the phone to ring with a job offering $100,000 per year. But don't take it unless it's cushy.
Oh btw, did I mention that there will be no 2 -4 month summer break, 2 weeks of Christmas, Easter etc. etc.

Bottom line... Do what you really enjoy because you'll be at it for a long time.

... as for me, I am a Podiatrist, graduate of the California College of Podiatric Medicine. Yes it's nice to be able to help people and get paid well for it.
If you're good at what you do and care about the people you serve, (and btw, everyone has to serve somebody as Bob Dylan says) then you'll do well.
If you're a good person that means a lot and people will want to work with you.
Trumpet....time for a long holiday. Get your associate to free you up!!!
Also Chris, you're so right that there will be positions we haven't even heard of so getting on the leading edge of a curve is good advice!!
Lastly, 4 days a week keeps me sane. Highly recommended....
...what a rant.....

trumpet1

Key sentence above: "Do what you really enjoy because you'll be at it for a long time".Wow. That should be the final say so in this thread.

vonbeeler

Also if you do what you enjoy you will achieve maximum results with minimum effort. It will seem to be minimum effort to you due to the fact the you enjoy what you are doing. Seems simple but many people struggle through life putting forth all this effort because they have no real desire for the task.
I use the rocking chair philosophy. When I'm looking back at my life in my rocking chair on the front porch say 90 years old God willing, I want to look back with no regrets. Also if what seems to be an obstacle or a stressful situation arises I ask myself is this really going to matter when I'm in my rocking chair looking back at my life? Bottom line not much really matters except family, friends, spirituality, love for life. So do something that you enjoy. Don't waste any day.

trumpet1

+1

ProV1

i'm a pimp, b1tches pay me monies...